Mathews and Herath achieve personal milestones

ICC Media Release

Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews, has achieved a career-best third position. Mathews scored 39 and 43 not out in Colombo, and was rewarded with a rise of two places that has elevated him into third position.

Outside the top 20, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has finished the series in 28th position after his first innings contribution of 82 earned him four places on the table.

Pakistan wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed and Sri Lanka opener Upul Tharanga also impressed with the bat in Colombo. Sarfraz has rocketed 29 places to 51st spot after scores of 103 and 55, while Tharanga has vaulted 49 places to 52nd after scoring 92 and 45.

Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara holds the number-one batting position, while AB de Villiers of South Africa is in second spot.

The left-arm spinner put in a fine performance and recorded figures of nine for 127 and five for 57. This performance not only gave Sri Lanka a comfortable 105 runs victory but has also helped him move up two places to third.

Other notable movers include Stuart Broad in eighth (up by one place), Junaid Khan 16th (up by one place), Moeen Ali in 32nd (up by one place) and Chris Jordan in 59th position (up by 36 places).

The bowling table is headed by South Africa’s Dale Steyn, who leads Australia’s Ryan Harris.

Jayawardena retires in 15th position

Mahela Jayawardena has signed off on his illustrious Test career in 15th position. The right-hander represented Sri Lanka in 149 Tests. At 11,814 runs, he sits in seventh place on the all-time list of most run-getters.

In his final Test, the 37-year-old fell both times to Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal after scoring four and 54. This meant a loss of one place for him on the table.

Jayawardena topped the batting chart in November 2009 following his 275 against India in Ahmedabad. This was his 109th Test, which also earned him a career-high 883 ratings points and put him in 39th position in the list of Reliance ICC Best-Ever Test Championship Rating.

Jayawardena on the Rankings table:

· He first reached the top ten in August 2000 after Sri Lanka drew the third Test and the series against South Africa in Colombo
· He spent 8 days as the top-ranked batsman in Test cricket in November 2009
· His highest points tally was 883 which he achieved at the same time
· He took over from team-mate Kumar Sangakkara but soon lost top spot to India’s Gautam Gambhir
· He ends his career in 15th place

England defeated India by 3-1 in the series that finished at The Oval on Sunday, while Sri Lanka beat Pakistan 2-0 in Colombo on Monday.

These results mean England has vaulted two places to third, while Sri Lanka has moved up one place to fourth. In contrast, India has slipped one place to fifth while Pakistan has dropped two places to sixth.

The 3-1 series win earned England four ratings points but India conceded six ratings points, while Sri Lanka gained six ratings points and Pakistan was docked seven ratings points.

England now leads Sri Lanka by three ratings points, while the latter is ahead of India and Pakistan by five ratings points. India and Pakistan are on equal ratings points at 96, but MS Dhoni’s side is ranked ahead of Misbah-ul-Haq’s side when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.

Number-one ranked South Africa is sitting on top of the table, but Australia is just one ratings points behind. Michael Clarke’s side will have one eye on the number-one spot when it arrives in the UAE in October, but to regain the coveted position, it will have to win both the Tests against Pakistan.

The table in the middle is tight with 11 ratings points separating third-ranked England from seventh-ranked New Zealand. With a lot of Test cricket to be played over the next five months, further changes to the Championship table is on the cards.

Reliance ICC Test Team Rankings table (as on 18 August, after the conclusion of England-India and Sri Lanka-Pakistan Test series)

*indicates provisional rating; a batsman qualifies for a full rating after a minimum of 40 started innings; a bowler qualifies for a full rating after he has conceded 1,500 runs.
!indicates career-highest rating